Queen Mary sparkled at the New Year’s Levee in Copenhagen,
dressed in gold with the crown jewels of Denmark atop her head.
At the first of several levees held to honour the government,
military and other personnel within the kingdom, Queen Mary arrived
with her husband, King Frederik, in a billowing golden skirt—first
worn in 2024 as the royal couple toured Scandinavia—and a new top
of glass beads, gold fabric, and a lace neckline.
Atop her head,
Queen Mary wore the
newly-fashioned Diamond Rose Bandeau tiara, which she specially commissioned in 2024
following her husband’s accession.
arrive at the New Year’s Levee The Royal House ©
Initially meant to be worn around the corseted waist,
Queen Mary is the first Danish royal to wear the rose-cut diamond
belt in any fashion in over a century. She worked with
specialist jewelers from the Royal Danish Collection to turn the
belt into a bandeau tiara in a single row of rose-cut diamonds,
whilst still able to be transformed back into a belt setting.
Once again, Crown Prince Christian attended the New Year’s
levee, as did Queen Margrethe, Prince Joachim and Princess
Marie—having spent the Christmas holiday in Washington, D.C.—and
Princess Benedikte. Though Princess Isabella turned 18 last April,
she was not present for the levee.
Among the guests were Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, her
Cabinet Ministers, the Speaker of the Danish Parliament, chiefs of
defence, police, and military arms, and courtiers working for King
Frederik, Queen Mary, Queen Margrethe, Prince Joachim and Princess
Marie, Princess Benedikte, and for the Danish Royal Family.
Greenland was a part of the festivities—the menu featured
Greenland snow crab as an appetizer—hours after King Frederik spoke
of the country’s resiliency in the face of attention from the
United States.
In his New Year’s speech, King Frederik said of Greenland: “This
spring I had the great joy of being back in Greenland, and once
again I was greeted by overwhelming warmth and kindness. It was and
is a turbulent time. Despite this, Greenlanders do not falter, but
stand against it with strength and pride. They create cohesion
internally and respect externally and cement the narrative of the
strong people of the Arctic.”
Year’s Levee in Denmark 1 January 2026 The Royal House
©
Queen Mary chose to represent her homeland of Australia with the
floral arrangements. Amongst the orange and yellow roses, and the
dusty orchids were “reddish eucalyptus”, according to the Danish Royal
Court.
King Frederik and Queen Mary will host a few more levees in the
coming days for the diplomatic corps, mayors and other regional
leaders, the government, and for first responders and other public
service workers, as well as representatives from their
patronages.
